Choosing Watercolour Paper

Factors to consider:

Texture
Rough & Torchon - Very pronounced texture
NOT (CP) - Medium grain surface and most popular
HP - Very smooth surface

Smooth surfaces are usually used for portraits, illustration work or detailed work whilst papers with a stronger texture are more suitable for landscapes and compositions where the effects of the materials used are of prime importance. An example of such an effect on 'rough' paper is where watercolour just makes contact with the 'peaks' of the undulating surface.

Composition
Paper manufactured from 100% cotton offer the best ageing properties and assure long-term conservation of the work. Water absorption is consistent so that the risk of buckling is reduced. Acid-free papers made from 100% cellulose with an alkaline reserve (2 - 3% of calcium chloride is added to protect the paper from the influence of external acid) also offer excellent conservation properties.

Weight
The weight of a paper is calculated in square metres shown as grams/metre² (g/m²). If the weight is less than 200g/m² the paper tends to buckle when wet. The chosen paper should be the one which becomes the less distorted when adapted to the technique used, whether very wet, slow, almost dry, fast... The paper weight is linked with the thickness of the paper measured in microns, and allows us to appreciate the nature of the paper.
- If painting is carried out rapidly with a small amount of water, the choice of paper will be a lightweight variety.
- A heavy paper will be preferred when the work in question requires a lot of water.
- The 200g/m² weight is the most economical and the 300g/m² offers the best guarantee of success when the user has not mastered all watercolour techniques. The heaviest weights are used for the wettest techniques.

Manufacture
There are two main types of process: Cylinder and Mould made. The former permits a deckle (ragged) edge on 2 sides when the paper is supplied in sheet form. When paper is made in a mould, four sides can be produced and this has its own aesthetic charm. Lower grade papers made on high speed cylinder machines tend to be trimmed. Many quality papers have a mark to show their provenance.